GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley steps down as judiciary chair, likely leaving Trump ally Lindsey Graham in charge

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is stepping down as Senate Judiciary Committee chair, paving the way for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to lead.

Grassley announced Friday that he'll leave his chairmanship to lead the Senate Finance Committee. The move likely leaves Graham, a recent ally of President Trump's, in charge of the committee, and could be why Graham met with Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker on Thursday.

The Iowa senator became Judiciary Committee chair when Republicans retook the Senate in 2015, and recently led the very public confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Still, it was Graham who took center stage in the questioning, vehemently defending Kavanaugh and slamming Democrats every step of the way.

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Graham has also stepped further into the spotlight as he's gone from Trump enemy to pal. But as rumors swirled that Trump installed Whitaker because he's been critical of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, Graham met with Whitaker and later said he "has every confidence" the acting attorney general will let Mueller "complete his job." Graham has also said Whitaker shouldn't have to recuse himself from overseeing Mueller's probe.

Graham on Friday acknowledged that he'll likely be the next senator to oversee the Justice Department and outlined his goals in a tweet. Kathryn Krawczyk